Ever since I started using social media, I’ve been told warnings on what I can and can’t do on the internet, whether it was about what websites I should avoid, or what I shouldn’t post about. Those were usually just social warnings, and I never really knew anything about the actual laws of the internet, or what rights media users actually had. This module gave me a more in-depth look on the laws that regulate the internet, and overall it gave me a different perspective. It also gave me the knowledge I need in order to post things on the internet safely!
I think if anything worries me, it would be the censorship laws. As weird as it is saying this, I generally don’t like being told what to do, and that applies to the internet as well. I don’t feel comfortable with the idea that the law can come in between me and the things I want to do online. It’s not that I’m going to be visiting sites that are bad or posting inappropriate content, It’s just the concept that bothers me.
Another thing that I find weird is that I feel like it’s super easy to accidentally violate this country’s copyright laws, and whenever I post anything I’m overly weary of my citations and where I get my sources from. While this makes me hyperaware of the source I am using and what I’m writing, living in that constant fear of retaliation is annoying, and I feel like I could make one wrong move and then I’d be breaking the law.
I don’t plan to modify the things I post anytime soon, but that may change in the future. I really don’t post that often online- I have gotten this far without breaking any laws, so I don’t see myself running into problems while I’m still in college (but at this point, who knows what could happen?).
